OmniComm gets Far East foothold with Promasys acquisition

14th November 2013

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OmniComm Systems, the US –based specialist in electronic data-capture (EDC) technology for clinical trials, is broadening its client base and its geographical reach by acquiring Dutch company Promasys.

Privately held, Promasys develops and markets clinical-trial software and related services designed specifically for academic research and investigator-initiated trials. Its customer base ranges from the European Union to the emerging markets of China, Japan, Korea and India.

The Promasys software features localised foreign-language support, making it easily deployable “in most of the world including the Asia/Pacific region”, OmniComm notes.

Ease of set-up

According to its new owner, the Promasys technology is “really the first commercially viable solution designed with the needs of the academic research environment in mind”, including ease of set-up that is “ideally suited” to investigator-initiated trials.

Most EDC solutions are “too complex and inefficient” to accommodate these academically focused studies, OmniComm adds. Traditionally, investigators have had to develop proprietary solutions or rely on a paper-based approach to manage their research.

Originally the Centre for Human Drug Research (CHDR), an early-phase clinical research organisation in the Netherlands, started developing the Promasys software in 1988.

That relationship continued and, after Promasys was set up in 2004, the company also worked on the software with researchers and clinical-trial staff from academic hospitals in various parts of the world.

Explosive growth

One rationale for the acquisition is the “explosive growth” of clinical trials across the Far East in recent years, and particularly in China and India.

In November 2011, data from the US-based online registry clinicaltrials.gov showed that 11.6% of the world’s clinical studies were being conducted in Asia. By February 2013, that figure had reached 15%, OmniComm pointed out.

The company’s EDC technology is already deployed in 56 countries around the world.

Leading provider

“The acquisition of Promasys BV offers a tremendous opportunity for further global expansion and strengthens our position as a leading provider of innovative EDC solutions worldwide,” commented Stephen Johnson, president and chief operating officer of OmniComm Systems.

No financial details were released on the deal. OmniComm’s previous acquisitions include the EDC assets of UK-based clinical software provider Logos Technologies in August 2009; and, in June that year, the data-capture business of US-based company eResearch Technology.